Author: Peter Landsman

Big Sky Moving Forward with Bubble Six-Pack & Challenger Replacement

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Boyne Resorts has firmed up an approximately $10 million deal with Doppelmayr USA to build a flagship detachable lift in The Bowl at Big Sky Resort and replace the damaged Challenger double with an all-new fixed-grip triple chair this summer, according to multiple sources.  The resort announced back in February that two new lifts were coming but has yet to officially say much else.  These will be the first new lifts built in Big Sky since Moonlight Basin, Spanish Peaks and the Yellowstone Club went bankrupt in 2008-10 and a sure sign that the region has bounced back.

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Doppelmayr bubble chair with heated seats at Sunshine Village, similar to what will be installed at Big Sky.

The big story here is the six-pack replacement of the Lone Peak triple which will be just the sixth lift in North America to feature chairs with bubbles and heated seats.  The others are at Park City, Sunshine Village, Okemo and the private Hermitage Club in Vermont.  The new six pack’s alignment will be altered from the current lift for better traffic flow and the bottom station will feature 90-degree loading.  The lift will be just over 3,000 feet long with a vertical rise of approximately 800 feet and ride time of just three minutes.

The new Challenger lift will be a bottom drive/bottom tension fixed-grip triple with loading carpet, capable of spinning up to 500 feet a minute for a 9.5 minute ride.  The Challenger double chair that broke in February only ran 396 fpm.   Challenger will most likely feature Doppelmayr’s Tristar drive/tension terminal and an expanded unloading area next to the summit of the Headwaters double.

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Mt. Bachelor Announces Expansion and Cloudchaser Detachable Quad

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cloudchase

Mt. Bachelor will open the long-awaited east side expansion served by a new high speed quad called Cloudchaser in time for Christmas.  Powdr Corp. has signed a nearly $6 million contract with Doppelmayr to install the lift this summer.  The project will add 635 acres of skiable terrain to Mt. Bachelor, making it the 5th largest ski area in the United States.  This will be the first new terrain serviced by a new lift since the Northwest Express was added in 1996.  With the addition of Cloudchaser, Mt. Bachelor will have eight detachable quad chairs serving more than 4,300 acres.  The new lift will rise 1,448 vertical feet with a slope length of 6,576 feet and 21 towers.

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Cloudchaser lift line seen this week.  It’s hard to believe a lift will be operating here in six months.

Mt. Bachelor will host a Cloudchaser launch party on May 7th with free skiing and entertainment.  “This is an exciting milestone for the entire team here at Mt. Bachelor and for you, our loyal pass holders,” interim General Manager John McCleod wrote in an email  to season pass holders.  “Powdr’s investment in this lift underscores a commitment to Mt. Bachelor and provides us a new way to enjoy our favorite mountain.”

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News Roundup: Hauling

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Caberfae Peaks staff bring tower tubes to the summit of North Peak for a new triple chair.  Thanks to Lawrence W. for the photo.

Feds Seize Jay Peak & Burke Mountain, Allege $200 Million Fraud

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Jay Peak and Q Burke Mountain Resorts have new management today courtesy of the federal government.  In a joint press conference with Vermont’s governor and state regulators this morning, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission released an 81-page complaint alleging Q Resorts Inc. owner Ariel Quiros and CEO Bill Stegner defrauded investors and misused $200 million over the past eight years in a “Ponzi-like” scheme.

The EB-5 Visa program gives foreign investors permanent U.S. residency in exchange for investing $500,000 and creating jobs at American businesses.  Funds are supposed to be used for specific projects such as the snowmaking expansion at Mt. Snow.  At Jay Peak, Mr. Quiros and Mr. Stegner raised $350 million with 700+ investors from 74 countries for seven different projects.  At least $200 million of that money was instead redirected to pay off loans used to buy both ski mountains, purchase a condo for Quiros at Trump Place in New York and pay personal income taxes.  “The alleged fraud ran the gamut from false statements to deceptive financial transactions to outright theft,” said Andrew Ceresney, Director of the SEC’s enforcement division.

The alleged flow of funds is so complicated the State of Vermont set up an interactive page to view it.
State of Vermont diagram showing the alleged flow of funds.
What does this all mean for the ski operations?  The SEC froze assets yesterday and appointed Kansas City-based Leisure Hotels and Resorts to operate Burke and Jay.  The company has no ski resort experience but owns numerous hotels in the Midwest. Jay’s Communications Director said this afternoon that Quiros and Stegner no longer have any authority to conduct business or direct operations until the case has concluded.

Longtime Chief Marketing Officer Steve Wright has stepped in as General Manager for now an

Jay Peak is open for skiing today with 4 

lifts spinning.

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Grand Targhee Replacing Blackfoot Lift

Peter Landsman3 Comments

As rumored for weeks, Grand Targhee confirmed yesterday on Facebook it will replace the aging Blackfoot double chair with a fixed-grip quad over the summer.  The Doppelmayr-built lift will increase capacity by 40 percent and run in an improved alignment, although it will be slightly slower than the old lift.  Targhee’s Director of Marketing said in a release, “The entire resort team is excited to replace and upgrade the Blackfoot chairlift.  The resort ownership is committed to reinvesting in the resort with ongoing improvements that enhance the guest experience. This is the largest and most visible of many recent capital investments.”

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Some will miss Blackfoot’s double diamond loading and unloading ramps, others will not!

Blackfoot is a Riblet center-pole model that’s faithfully served skiers for 42 years.  The lift is 3,236 feet long with a vertical rise of 1,200′ and hourly capacity of 1,300.  A non-profit in Valdez, Alaska is hoping to buy the lift to create that region’s first lift-served ski area. With a new Blackfoot, Grand Targhee will have four modern quad chairs.  The resort also plans to add a third high speed quad in the near future on Peaked Mountain in the area currently used for cat skiing.  Removal of Blackfoot begins this week although Targhee will spin its other lifts through April 24th.  With this announcement, new lifts in North America are pacing above last year, with 30 projects already announced and hopefully many more to come.

News Roundup: Peak Pressure

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  • Peak Resorts’ financial footing reportedly worsens amid staff layoffs, reduced operations and spending cuts.  The company owns 14 resorts across the Eastern U.S.
  • Leitner Ropeways celebrates 15 years of DirectDrive with 55 installations to date.
  • Poma has already delivered components for Zacatecas, Mexico’s new gondola but construction that was supposed to start in January has been delayed.
  • The 2002 Garaventa CTEC Chondola at Willamette Pass is still for sale along with the mountain’s Midway triple.  WP apparently can’t afford to maintain its only detachable lift and listed it for sale a year ago.
  • Le Relais also has 2 lifts newly listed (these are being removed to make way for a new six pack.)
  • LST signs La Plagne to launch the company’s first detachable lift next winter. MND Group CEO Xavier Gallot-Lavallee commented, “We are delighted to announce the initial commercial success of our brand new range of detachable chairlifts. The new contract signed with SAP, a subsidiary of leading ski resort operator Compagnie des Alpes, confirms the benefits of the innovative technology that we have developed and positions MND as a leading market player.”
LST chair
LST will debut unique new detachable chairs and terminals for a new six-pack chairlift in La Plagne.

See How CWA Builds Gondola Cabins in Switzerland

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Cesar Dockweiler is the General Manager for Mi Teleferico, the growing state-owned gondola network in Bolivia’s capitol city.  This week, he’s in Switzerland visiting suppliers working on the Blue and White lines for La Paz, which are about 75 percent complete. Throughout the trip, Mr. Dockweiler has been tweeting updates from CWA and Fatzer to his more than 3,000 followers.

Pictures from CWA show how workers still make gondola cabins one at a time and largely by hand.  Because the company builds on demand, even a lift with just four cabins can have its own custom design.

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News Roundup: Expansions

Peter Landsman3 Comments
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Apologies for the lack of posts this week, I’m on a ski vacation.
  • Snowbird granted unanimous approval to build two chairlifts, a new gondola and upgrade the Mineral Basin Express.  A zip line will share towers with the gondola in Mary Ellen Gulch.
  • Boyne Resorts buys 77 acres on Snoqualmie Pass for an improved connection between Summit Central and Summit West that could someday include a new chairlift.
  • Okemo Mountain Resort files for permit to build a fixed-grip beginner quad chair at Jackson Gore.
  • In other Snowbird news, the two-month project to replace the Aerial Tram’s track ropes begins April 18th.
  • Big Snow America is the latest incarnation of the snow dome at New Jersey’s Meadowlands hoping to be the United States’ first indoor ski slope.  The latest plan pegs an opening next year.  Doppelmayr CTEC completed two lifts for the project – a quad chair and a platter – back in 2008 that have yet to carry any skiers.